Fire

The fire that ripped through VC assets, sparked by the hunah-hunah back to a rate regime that choked the exuberance of those who liked to throw money at anything with a smile and a story, has left charred remains. Business models have been torched. Dreams popped. Egos bruised. And left many investors queasy at what return they will get, if any. And yet, those that survive will thrive. Green shoots are starting to grow. Take Fintech. A super-sexy thematic given the opportunity to disrupt traditional incumbents whose tech stack might still feature a line of Commodore 64s in the basement. As rates ran higher and inflation bit hard, many business models struggled, and valuations hissed air. Sentiment soured. Into the mix though, operators adapted, evolved, and sit now on the cusp of a boom. The opportunity to disrupt remains as compelling as ever: from Open Banking to Gen AI to up-for-it ‘tech enablers’. A Fintech ‘super-cycle’, say analysts, is underway. The dislocation across the piece has left distressed sellers of high-quality assets and whilst public markets continue to dance to the tune of the Mag-7, or 6, or whatever the latest is given bloated valuations and de-minimis growth, many fintech opportunities, and fintech opportunities in the UK, are for sale. And for sale, at deep discounts. Those with the agility and chutzpah to go shopping, will be generously rewarded.